Finally Ready

I thought I was ready the year I was turning 40 but it never happened. This year, at 43, I was ready. Ready to take all the really good habits I've created over the past few years and combine that with all the new life style habits I need to create a strong, lean, healthy, fit machine. So here I am, ready to blog about my journey and share my adventures of becoming a well tuned machine.

I walked the Breast Cancer 3 Day in San Diego in November 2009. 60 mile walk over 3 days. I trained long and hard over the months preceding the walk. My heart didn't like the hills, my feet were plagued with plantar fasciitis and blisters, my lower back, legs, calves and quads paid dearly for the weight they carried around. I ate my way through all the training and teetered at my highest weight ever. I decided it was time as soon as the walk ended to cleanse my body of toxins and start a program to lose weight, inches and get really fit.

We returned the week of Thanksgiving so I couldn't start then. I had a holiday dinner for work the next week and decided to start my cleanse the day following it the beginning of December. While following this strict 5 day cleanse I poured through the internet trying to decide what I wanted to do next. The walk was over. What goal could I set for myself to work toward? I didn't want to diet to lose weight, I need a plan....a real plan with a long term goal that deals with an athletic endeavor. I picked up books I already owned on fitness trying to figure out what to do. I spent hours trying to figure out what I could do that I thought I would be successful at doing until I decided to try a personal trainer.

I started looking for personal trainers in the area but wanted someone who would understand my situation. I didn't want a 22 year old kid. I landed on the YMCA, and found a great woman who agreed to meet me on the same day I called. I bought a 40 hour package on a payment plan and began my journey. She took my measurements and weight and asked me my goals. I hadn't prepared for that. The only goal I told her was that I wanted to ride on roller coasters again with my daughter without having to worry or wonder if I would fit, and to work on my balance issues. I have later come up with many more, including making sure I was comfortable taking any class offered there and use every piece of equipment in the gym so that I could continue on my own. I see my trainer, Mary, two or three times a week for an hour and will be very sad when my package runs out.

A couple weeks after starting with the trainer I also joined Weight Watchers as I knew I needed to adhere to some sort of eating plan in addition to being active. To this day, I have lost a total of 34 lbs since the beginning of December. I still have a lot to go. 90 plus pounds. Ugh. I am loving every minute of the energy I have from all the hard work I am putting in. My schedule looks like this right now:

Sundays - playing 1-2 hours racquetball during the day, 90 min of wallyball in the evening
Monday - 90 min of Yoga
Tuesday - 60 min w/ trainer in AM, 60 min of Kickboxing in PM
Wednesday - 60-120 min of on own, cardio, strength training, whatever at home
Thursday - 60 min w/ trainer in AM, 60 min of Zumba
Friday - 60 min of Step Aerobics, 25 min of Core Ab
Saturday - Weigh in at Weight Watchers, 60 min Drums Alive, 60 min Boot Camp Class, 60 min of Kickboxing

I'm busy. I'm focused. And I'm seeing results. I look forward to sharing more because it has been two months and I am more motivated than ever. So I know that not only am I a machine and that I CAN do it, but that I AM finally ready!!!